Shloka 46

Vamana's Three Steps — Vamana’s Three Steps and the Binding of Bali

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच इत्येवमुक्ते वचने बाणेन बलिसूनुना प्रोवाच भगवान् वाक्यमादिकर्त्ता जनार्दनः

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca ityevamukte vacane bāṇena balisūnunā provāca bhagavān vākyamādikarttā janārdanaḥ

Translation

పులస్త్యుడు పలికెను—బలిపుత్రుడు బాణుడు ఈ విధంగా పలికిన తరువాత, ఆదికర్త అయిన భగవాన్ జనార్దనుడు ప్రత్యుత్తరంగా వాక్యము పలికెను.

Speakers

• Pulastya (narrator) recounting: Bāṇa speaks; then Janārdana replies (implied audience in the Purāṇic frame).

Primary Deities

• Vishnu (Janardana)
• Pulastya
• Bana
• Bali

Key Themes

• Purāṇic narration style (uvāca markers)
• Transition from stuti to divine response
• Viṣṇu as first cause (ādi-kartā)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

Who is Pulastya here, and what is his role?

Pulastya is a prominent ṛṣi used as a narrative authority in Purāṇic discourse. The ‘uvāca’ formula signals that he is transmitting the episode within a larger frame-story.

Why is Janārdana called ‘ādi-kartā’ in a scene about Vāmana and Bali?

The epithet links the avatāra’s historical-seeming action to cosmic metaphysics: the same Lord who measures the worlds is also the primordial cause, so the episode is both narrative and theological revelation.

What does this verse indicate about the structure of the passage?

It marks a shift: after Bāṇa’s praise (stuti), the text prepares for the Lord’s direct speech, a common Purāṇic pattern where devotion elicits a clarifying boon, teaching, or reassurance.